The invention pertains to the general field of pressurized spray cans and more particularly to an aerosol paint spray can that can only be operated when it is connected by means of an a-c power cord, to an a-c utility power source.
The use of graffiti to deface various types of surfaces is wide spread both in cities of the United States of America and cities of many other industrialized world nations. Graffiti can consist of any unauthorized name, word or symbol or any combination thereof that is placed on a public or private surfaces by so called xe2x80x9cgraffiti taggersxe2x80x9d. Graffiti taggers have been around and have marked public surfaces since the days of the Pharaohsxe2x80x94even the pyramids did not escape this aesthetic plaque. Today, there is hardly a blank wall in inner cities, such as in central Los Angeles, that does not display some form of graffiti.
The primary target areas for graffiti taggers include public and private businesses, street and freeway signs, subways, trains and buses. To curtail the application of graffiti, several plans, devices and activities have been implemented: in Los Angeles, for instance, 4,000 people participated in a graffiti paint-out spearheaded by the Los Angeles Police Department. In one morning, the volunteers used 1700 gallons of paint and eradicated 62,000 feet of graffiti. The work of both public and private graffiti cleanup efforts are evident across the city in patchwork squares of unmatched paint on walls and buildings. As well meaning as cleanup techniques are, statistics have shown that when graffiti are covered in patches, the patches are invitations to graffiti vandals. Thus, graffiti is three times as likely to reappear then if the wall were all one color. To prevent street and particularly high-rise freeway signs from being marked razor wire has been placed around the signs access areas. The Transit Authorities of the various cities have taken cars out of service for cleaning as soon as they were marred by graffiti, no matter how slight the marking. Guards and dogs have also been posted in Yards where these vehicles are stored for cleaning and maintenance.
To implement graffiti removal and watch programs has been costly for city governments. Most of the money goes to pay for crews that respond to the complaints by homeowners and businesses. Last year, the Los Angeles county government spent over $10 million trying to clean up the graffiti. The city of Los Angeles spent another $4 million, and the Southern California Rapid Transmit district spent $5 million. These figures are in addition to the money spent by various police agencies in chasing and arresting graffiti taggers. In New York, the Transit Authority has spent $6 billion in subway cleanup campaigns. Workers spend an average of 110 hours a week cleaning spray-paint off subway cars. In subways, it has been estimated that the national cost for controlling graffiti will exceed $4 billion. In addition to the cost involved in trying to eradicate graffiti, there is also the cost involved in decreased property values and in the more intangible psychic costs of living in a city that looks as though it is under siege.
Graffiti taggers use ballpoint pens, felt-tip markers and aerosol spray cans to perform their work with spray cans being the marker of choice. Over the years there have been various efforts to control graffiti by clamping down on the use of aerosol paint spray cans. According to the paint industry about 41,400 of these paint spray cans with a retail value of $120,000 are sold each day in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. By another estimate, more than 8,000 of these spray cans are used daily to deface property nationwide. To curtail the adverse use of spray cans, laws have been passed or are in process of passage to keep spray cans locked up, making these cans unavailable for purchase by persons under the age of 18 and even to ban the sale of spray paint cans statewide, except those used by commercial firms. An outright ban is, of course, unfair to both the manufacturers and retailersxe2x80x94and most likely ineffective.
A search of the prior art did not disclose any patents or other literature that read directly on the claims of the instant invention. Particularly, no patents were found that disclosed aerosol paint spray cans that can only be operated when connected to a utility power source. However, the following U.S. patents were considered related:
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,385,271 Bierend et al patent discloses an aerosol spray can that is modified by the attachment of a valve. The valve has an upper fluid port to which is attached a spray head and a lower fluid port that is attached to a valve attachment port on the spray can. The valve is operated by an a-c utility power supplied through a power cord. When power is not applied, the valve is positioned to prevent the fluid in the can from being sprayed. Conversely, when power is applied, the valve is repositioned to allow the fluid in the can to be sprayed when the spray head is depressed.
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,318,208 Van der Wal patent disclose an aerosol spray can that is operated by a handgrip releasably attached to a modified spray can. The handgrip which can only be operated when it is connected to a 120-volt a-c power receptacle, includes a manually operated trigger. The trigger controls the application of the a-c power to a solenoid located within the handgrip. When the solenoid is activated, a first valve and a second valve are sequentially opened to allow the paint in the spray can to be sprayed.
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,014,884 Wonsch patent discloses an aerosol spray can that includes a spray mechanism for finely atomizing fluids through a hydraulically-operated pump. The spray mechanism is inserted into a housing which is connected with the supply container for the liquid through a close-fitted or frictional locking connection. The spray mechanism incorporates a battery operated gear pump in which, the suction line of the pump is connected through an opening in the bottom of the housing into the supply container. The supply container is equipped with a venting line, whereby the gear pump includes a pressure tube at its output which is connected with a discharge nozzle.
The U.S. Pat. No. 4,972,975 Fuhrig patent discloses a housing that stores a battery that powers an electric motor that operates a compressor for producing compressed air in combination with a suction unit and a pressure joint. A product container that includes a spray nozzle is placed inside the housing with a connection between the pressure joint of the compressor and the interior of the product container. The compressor pressurizes the product container through an aperture thereby forcing the liquid through the container spray nozzle.
The U.S. Pat. No. 4,971,257 Birge patent discloses an electrostatic particle spraying apparatus. The apparatus includes a hand held triggering mechanism that includes a d-c power source and a coupling sleeve into which a conventional aerosol spray can is inserted when the triggering mechanism is squeezed, a hammer depresses the nozzle tip of the aerosol can, releasing the pressurized fluid of the can from the nozzle tip.
This application is also related to the applicant""s copending application Ser. No. 08/095,851, filed Jul. 23, 1993 and entitled Utility-Power Operated Aerosol Spray Can.
The U.S. Pat. No. 5,385,271 Bierend, et al patent and the U.S. Pat. No. 5,308,208 Van der Wal patent as well as U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/212,939 filed Mar. 15, 1994 and the present application are all assignees of the present invention. The U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,385,271 and 5,308,208 are incorporated herein by reference thereto.
For background purposes and indicative of the art to which the invention relates, reference may be made to the following remaining patents found in the pre-examination search:
The utility-power operated, pressurized spray can is designed to dispense a fluid only if an energizer or activator is attached to the can and the activator is connected by means of a power cord, to a utility a-c power receptacle. Therefore, xe2x80x9cgraffiti taggersxe2x80x9d are prevented from using spray cans in areas not having access to an a-c power source. Thus, the use of spray cans to spray graffiti is greatly reduced or eliminated. In its most basic design configuration, the utility-power operated, pressurized spray can consists of:
A. A pressurized spray can having a spray head opening that includes an upper end and a lower end. To the upper end is attached a spray head and to the lower end is attached an internal spray control valve means.
B. An internal spray control valve means that is adapted to be attached to the lower end of the spray head opening. The control valve has a lower end adapted to receive the fluid contents of the spray can and means for controlling the paint flow therethrough.
C. An armature means mounted on a non-magnetic housing. The armature includes a means for being biased in a first, at rest, position and has an upper surface to which is mounted the internal spray control valve means.
D. An external armature activator means adapted to surround the pressurized spray can and adapted to be connected to an a-c utility power source. When power is applied to the activator, an electromagnetic coil located within the activator means is activated. This coil activator causes the armature means to move from its at rest position which then allows the spray control valve means to allow paint to be applied to the spray head stem.
A further development of the above basic design consists of a utility-power operated, pressurized spray can consisting of:
A. A pressurized spray can consisting of:
(1) an upper section having a spray head stem opening into which is inserted a spray head, and
(2) a spray control valve having an upper end that terminates at the spray head stem opening and a lower end that is connected to a free standing paint siphon tube,
B. A movable armature dimensioned to traverse longitudinally through a non-magnetic housing. The armature is spring biased to remain in a normal upward position,
C. A valve assembly that controls the paint flow through the siphon tube, and that is movably attached to an upper surface of the movable armature. The valve assembly is designed to be placed in either a downward open position or an upward closed position, and
D. An external, separable movable-armature activator that is dimensioned to be placed around the pressurized spray can within the volume encompassing the movable armature. The activator is designed to be connected to an a-c utility power source. When the activator is not connected, the movable armature remains in an upward position and conversely, when the activator is connected, the movable armature moves downward. The downward movement causes the valve assembly to move to its downward position which then allows paint to be sprayed when the spray head is depressed.
The design of the utility-power operated pressurized spray can is disclosed in a first embodiment and a second embodiment. The first embodiment is further disclosed in two designs that feature a valve assembly that is located above the upper surface of the spray can. The second embodiment is further disclosed in three designs that utilize a valve design that is located at the bottom of the can In the first embodiment, the external activator includes a pistol grip handle; and in the second embodiment the activator is placed over the bottom section of the spray can.
The invention is also disclosed with two movable armature designs. In a first design, the armature moves longitudinally and in the second design, it rotates. In both designs, the armature when activated by the activator, moves from an at rest, position to a downward position. When positioned downward, the valve assembly opens allowing paint to be sprayed when the spray head is depressed.
In the third design of the second embodiment, the spray head is not depressed when paint is to be dispensed instead an electrical switch is used to energize the activator. As long as the switch is depressed, paint will be sprayed. This design also eliminates the need for the standard spray control valve used on conventional spray cans.
All of the above embodiments can be manufactured with an activator that includes an electro-mechanical assembly. The assembly allows power to be applied to the activator only when a can is attached to the activator and the activator is raised above a surface.
In view of the above disclosure, it is the primary object of the invention to provide an aerosol spray can that can only be operated when the can is connected to an a-c utility power source. Because of the a-c power requirement, the average spray paint graffiti tagger will be unable to spray graffiti in most outdoor locations. In addition to the primary object of the invention, it is also an object of the invention to provide an aerosol spray can that:
is designed so that if a graffiti tagger attempts to connect a magnet or a d-c battery to the solenoid housing, the linear-motion solenoid assembly will not function and paint cannot be sprayed,
if a tagger attempts to puncture the solenoid housing, the puncture will quickly depressurize the can and create an uncontrolled paint flow at the puncture opening,
is reliable and maintenance free,
is cost effective from both a manufacturers and consumers point of view, and
will save countless manhours and costs expended in the removal of graffiti from various structures.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description of the preferred embodiment and the appended claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.